Feeling Alive
by SiriusMarauderFan
Summary: After a rough break-up, Roxanne gives in to what people perceive her to be. one shot.


**Author's Note:** Written for…

Next Gen Competition. _Prompt:_ Roxanne meets her best friend

Best Songs Ever Challenge. _Song:_ "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift

PayDay Challenge. _Prompt:_ "Counting Stars" by OneRepublic, "Give me that dress" (dialogue)

**Feeling Alive**

Roxanne hummed to herself idly, searching through rack after rack of dresses. Dominique's wedding was coming up in a few weeks and Roxy had already told her mother she had something to wear, but of course she'd lied.

She held up a short yellow flower-print sundress and grimaced at it. It was far too cheery for her tastes, but then this was a wedding. She couldn't show up in a t-shirt and trainers like she wanted to, and her mum and Aunt Fleur would have a fit if she didn't choose something at least mildly appropriate.

She kept looking until she came across a sleek purple-grey dress that was neither cheery nor dull, and she thought she could probably get away with it. The change rooms were packed and she had to wait a while before she could snag an empty one.

The dress looked amazing on her; accentuating her curves and making her look taller and bustier than she was, and the color complimented her dark skin perfectly.

'_Derek will love it_,' she thought before she could stop herself.

Until a week prior, Derek was Roxy's intended plus-one to her cousin's wedding. Now she'd be going alone.

She stripped immediately, angrily tugging on her jeans and tank top. She snatched the dress back up from the bench and charged through crowds to wait at the checkout.

The line was absurdly long and the sixteen-year-old berated herself for not allowing her mother to do the shopping for her months ago, when the wedding had been announced.

'_Always making bad decisions.'_

The thought disappeared as quickly as it had come, but it left a trail of trouble and despair in its wake, like all the rest of Roxanne's thoughts.

She left the checkout line quickly, heading for a jewelry display and idling there for a moment, pretending to look at a pink topaz necklace before disappearing down an aisle of ladies winter wear.

She looked around quickly, rightly guessing it was empty since summer was well under way. She held open her tote bag and stuffed the dress inside, making sure it was hidden before slinging the bag over her shoulder again.

It wasn't that she didn't have the money. Roxanne worked every summer at her dad's shop, and he and Angelina still gave her allowances while she was in school. Long gone were the days when Weasleys wore faded clothes and used second-hand wands. The last time Roxy had worn hand-me-downs was when she was a baby and had been given everything Rose had outgrown.

"What do you think you're going?"

Roxy whirled around at the sound of the voice, finding a blonde girl about her age standing behind her. The girl looked vaguely familiar, and she figured they'd probably seen each other around school.

"Give me that dress," the girl said, outstretching a hand to take the garment. She was wearing a store employee shirt; her nametag read _Holly_.

Roxy considered pretending not to know what the salesgirl was talking about, but she knew it would only get her so far. With a heavy sigh, she reached into her bag and pulled out the dress.

"It's on sale, you know," Holly said with a smirk, draping the dress over her arm carefully.

"It's not about the money," Roxanne informed her, slightly insulted by the insinuation. She was wearing brand new dragon hide boots – which her Uncle Charlie did not need to know about.

Holly cocked her head to one side. "Then why bother?"

Roxy shrugged, leaning against a support pole with her arms crossed over her chest. "I'm a Slytherin," she answered as if that was explanation enough. The salesgirl seemed confused by it.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"I'm a bad person. I don't need any more of a reason than that. I'm just … naturally rotten."

Holly scoffed. "And I suppose you think Ravenclaws are nerds and Gryffindors are arrogant and Hufflepuffs are … what? Too nice?"

Roxy smiled in spite of herself. "I have cousins in all of those houses and, yeah, they could probably fit all those descriptions," she joked. Holly didn't seem impressed.

"All that stereotype stuff is crap. My mom was a Slytherin – nicest and most caring person you'd ever meet. My sister's a Ravenclaw and I get better grades than her. Houses don't determine who you are, Roxanne."

"How do you know my name?"

"We're in the same year, remember? I'm Holly Vincent; I was sorted right before you. I'm Hufflepuff though, so we don't have any classes together."

"Right … we were in the same boat."

Holly smiled. "That's right. I was afraid of the water, but you told me the Giant Squid didn't hurt first-years. You were very kind. Definitely not what one would expect from a Slytherin."

Roxy shook her head sadly. She knew what the girl was trying to do, and she appreciated it, but there was no hope. Roxanne was just different; a lost cause. Her whole family knew it by the way they avoided talking about her house. And then there was Derek: wonderful, handsome Derek whom she'd been head over heels for. He made it all very clear to her how damaged she was when he left. If only she'd been a Gryffindor. Rose didn't seem to have any trouble keeping her boyfriend…

"Here," Holly said, holding out the dress for Roxanne to take.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, technically you didn't steal anything, so you're free to go. You just have to promise to pay for it. I'd really hate to have to contact your parents if you actually stole something. I really like your dad's shop and I think it would just be really awkward going in there if I busted you."

Roxanne laughed and accepted the dress, keeping it in her hands. "You know, you're not really helping the Hufflepuffs-are-too-nice assumption, right?"

Holly shrugged. "I never said they were _all_ crap, just most of them."

"I'll be sure to remember that for the fall."

"You do that. Maybe try not to listen to what everyone says – just do what feels right."

The salesgirl headed down a different aisle then, leaving Roxanne alone with her thoughts. Normally she'd find her mind to be a scary place to be stuck in, but right now it was full of contradictions and was in desperate need of reorganizing, so it didn't seem like such a bad place.


End file.
